R-Production Engineer

• Compensation: USD 80,000 - USD 110,000 - yearly

Vantage provides natural solutions to our customers’ technical performance and marketing needs through a unique combination of chemistry, application expertise and service. Underpinned by our broad portfolio of formulations, ingredients and actives that are built on a backbone of sustainable oils, fats and their derivatives, Vantage targets selected markets and applications including personal care, food, surface treatment, agriculture, pharma, and consumer and industrial performance.

Vantage is headquartered in Deerfield, IL., operates in 11 countries worldwide and employs more than 1,000 talented professionals focused on delivering exceptional customer experiences with every interaction.

We are a dynamic people-centered organization where you’ll be part of a collaborative global team. Embracing our cultural diversity, we learn from each other to constantly improve, adapt and iterate. We value the voices and talents of our colleagues, empowering them to drive their unique ideas to completion. We’re convinced that exceptionally motivated employees produce outstanding results, and we celebrate them by fostering a culture of recognition, development, learning, excellence and shared achievement.

Most importantly, we know you’re going to like it here. For more information visit:  or Linked In/vantage.

Position Title:
Production Engineer

Position Summary

The Englewood site manufactures personal care ingredients and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Our operations include liquid and solid blending, encapsulation, milling, spray congealing, extrusion, and down packing.

The Production Engineer owns day-to-day manufacturing performance s is a hands-on, floor-based role: working alongside operators, supervisors, maintenance, and quality to monitor processes in real time, solve problems at the root, and continuously improve how our equipment and our people perform. Englewood runs a mix of automated and manual operations, and a significant share of the work is still done by hand.

A core part of this role is to learn those manual processes firsthand and bring innovative, practical solutions that improve safety, reduce labor load, and make our operations more efficient and consistent.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role is process optimization grounded in real life on the production floor. The Production Engineer spends time with operators to understand how and why we do what we do, then applies sound engineering principles to make it easier for our people to be successful every shift. That work follows a simple cycle:

Understand. Spend time on the floor to learn each process, how it actually runs, and why it is done the way it is.

Measure. Collect data on real-life performance, including downtime, yields, cycle times, labor content, quality results, and near misses, rather than relying on assumptions.

Prioritize. Rank improvement opportunities by their impact on safety, quality, and productivity, and focus effort where it matters most.

Deliver. Facilitate the actions needed to bring improvements to life by aligning Production, Maintenance, Quality, and vendors, then follow through until results are sustained.

When this cycle is working, it shows up in our results:

Reduced downtime caused by unplanned events

Higher production performance through schedule adherence and Right First Time (RFT) manufacturing

Safer, less labor-intensive operations through targeted automation of manual tasks, with more efficient and consistent processes as a result

100% On Time In Full (OTIF) delivery with zero customer complaints, reflecting consistently high quality and reliable product stability

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Key…